The Cry of Mankind
by Antipoda
Summary: Alucard has always rejoiced himself as probably the strongest vampire that ever existed. The count, the no life king, with no worthy opponent to mention. But a halt he will have to have from his title, when for the first time he encounters the one who holds the title of "the first vampire in history". Who, unfortunately, rejoices still an undead life. Rated M.
1. Exsilium

_**Disclaimer: **_Beware before proceeding, o curious reader! for the story that lies beyond the line is a composition made by a native spanish speaker! I truly attempt to reduce the grammatical mistakes to a minimum, yet I cannot guarantee my writing is completely devoid of them. I try hard! and hopefully my writing is clean enough to be fully understood. Of course there is always room for improvement, and one of my principal objectives with this is precisely that...to learn, to practice my english and slowly become a better writer.

Now, I shall clarify that all the intellectual scheme that gave birth to Hellsing should be credited to Kouta Hirano, and that the reason I use his characters in this story of mine is for mere entertainment, not focusing on obtain some revenue or whatsoever. You could say my only wish is to tribute this manga, for in my opinion it is one of the best I have stumbled upon. Summarizing, all the environment and the characters portrayed here (with the exception of punctual ones) belong to the author of Hellsing, and I would never claim them as my own.

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_**Chapter 1: Exsilium**_

_"And here lays the king of treason, the one who has fallen to the depths of his own hell, burying himself with the heavy burden of sin. The cursed brother, the one who dared to kill in the name of envy, and decided to speak deceit in the name of pride. Delusions have brought you to the top of your narcissism, letting you fall soon enough to be rapt by the gossip of shame, while your almost lifeless body drowns itself in the pools of your inhumane blood. But you shall not die here my son, you shall suffer for the rest of eternity the weight of your sins until the day of your dawn finally arrives, and your soul gets purified. Hours may pass, days may pass, months may pass, years may pass, centuries may pass, millennia may pass...no matter how long it takes, you shall live until your virtue has surpassed your sin! But don't worry child...for all the time you need is yours, even if that time is close to eternity."_

Dusk is breaking when the almost lifeless body of the traitor lays in silence over the veil of earth itself. Many would consider it an awful night, since the sky covers the moon with a graceful sheet of dark clouds, each one of them crying their tears of life. Many people would try to find a haven to rest, run in order not to get soaked in the downpour and probably catch a delicate disease, find a nice thick blanket and cover themselves with it, some of them with a nice bonfire close by. Not everybody would actually enjoy the coldness of water on their skin as fervently as the traitor, for in that cold night he lays undisturbed with a smile on his face, water sliding carefully through his eyes and cheeks almost resembling his tears. None could blame him for enjoying this weather though, taking into account the horrors he endured just before nightfall. Actually, he never really enjoyed water nor cold weather, yet the gentle but cold sensation of water is soothing just after experiencing torture and pain with no equal, and the music of water embracing the ground could also become the most beautiful piece of art in the world. He was tired, pained, hopeless, and even a downpour such as it appears as a paradise compared to the emptiness of spirit that was left in his body.

He can almost feel the tiny remains of life parting ways with his soul, as he can feel his humanity slipping away from his hands. Soon enough his smile finds no more livelihood, for his skin becomes numb from the caresses of water. And so he holds his last breath under the black sky, watching the moon as it overlooks earth in the middle of the mourning clouds, slowly turning from white to yellow, from yellow to orange, from orange to red, and from red to crimson; the deepest red he could have ever seen in his life, a red so surreal no human would be able to ever see. And so he closed his eyes and became one with the night, leaving the last traces of humanity behind, holding tightly the hands of eternity, of an undead eternity that was only his, such as the crimson red that now the moon was dressed as.

And so he was reborn.

Not long passed before the sun appeared on the horizon. A couple of hours maybe, but time that in the eyes of the traitor was merely his very last breath of life. The sun was as beautiful as ever, yet its presence suffocated the man like nothing else ever did. The star as always was bright and powerful, travelling through the sky like the king it has always been, but shining in a way that its white light became almost blinding, with its rays violating profusely the depth of his eyes. The heat on the other hand suddenly started to become unbearable. It is not as such it was truly warm, but somehow his skin received the embrace of the sun as if it had never felt it in his life, feeling how the power of the light penetrated his skin and tore of every nerve on his body, with no intention to ever cease. The pain was something he could not even grasp, for its nature was something completely alien to him —and to anybody until then— and because of it he adventured himself to move! to find some place to hide from the inclemency of the now bittersweet sun, finding as soon as he tried that his body was healed completely, and on top of it was stronger and as light as a feather. Surprised he was, and yet wasted no time in finding the sacred shadows that would protect him. A close tree with a rather significant hole would do.

As soon as he found himself slightly more comfortable, not denying the fact that the sun still found its way to violate his eyes, he decided to take care of his strange situation. He recalled accurately the events of the last night, where devoid of all mercy the voices of heaven destroyed his humanity, will and ego. He could remember all the pain he had been through, and how after an eternity everything ceased, the gentle inclemency of a downpour mollifying the pain of his body and spirit. He felt his life slip away, and yet now in the very day, he woke up in the same place he thought would be his last, for reasons unknown to him.

_"But you shall not die here my son, you shall suffer for the rest of eternity the weight of your sins until the day of your dawn finally arrives, and your soul gets purified. Hours may pass, days may pass, months may pass, years may pass, centuries may pass, millennia may pass...no matter how long it takes, you shall live until your virtue has surpassed your sin"_

The voice of his damnation echoed in his empty body, resonating through his hollow inside and hurting his soul with the amplification of reverberation. What was the true meaning of those words? were they as simple as they sounded? or was that a phrase of simbolism of hazy meaning? for a moment he considered a eternal life between the circles of hell, eternity trapped inside a parallel world, or something of that sort. Hell, he even considered the cycles of reincarnation, feeling as though he would be cursed to continue it forever, never reaching Nirvana, experiencing how in every cycle his soul would rotten a little more each time until it would banish from existence. An yet, his body manifested something that was completely off of his expectations.

Pale skin, inhuman strength and endurance, and also the fact that he could no longer stand under the sun comfortably. He felt no tiredness and no hunger, and so he confused on the thought that his condition seemed more of a blessing that a curse. What are the thoughts of god? what did he intend with this doing? and more imporantly, in what had him become? he grasped death with his fingers, and yet logic confirmed he was still alive. But he felt no life within, no soul within, only void and despair. In what had him become?

Days passed, the man slowly getting more accustomed to his new identity. Nights never felt as graceful, soothing and comfortable, and even though in his previous life he used to find affliction in cold weathers, now they were a gentle breeze for his skin. Yet, he never could handle the sun again. To think that he always lived close to the desert, surrounded by a weather so warm it was suffocating, and still many years surrounded by it only made it evoke a sensation of peace. To think how much he changed in a sole night, how his life changed in a sole night.

He could recall the other small differences in his body. He no longer felt hunger, repulsing at the very sight of the dishes he used to enjoy before. And yet he felt thirst, a thirst of something he could not recall, for water was as repulsive as food, giving him a constant but endurable sense of discomfort. He also saw a sight most intriguing, as the reflection of his face in the water showed a crimson color in his eyes instead of the green he always saw, reminding well the crimson red that dressed the moon that fateful night. But his walk was peaceful, rather gentle, mainly because of his confusion and will to learn a little bit of himself every day. He had no idea of the prowess of his body...his deadly prowess.

The era he found himself living in was not the most gentle, for it was a era of around 7000 years before christ, where agriculture was not that "popular" on his surroundings, and most of the people lived a nomad life based on the economy of hunting. Houses were mostly caves and huts located close to the rivers, and society was limited to the diverse tribes. Life was a constant struggle, subject to the inclemency of weather and the strength of wild animals. And scared was the protagonist of our story to get close to his fellow human beings, for the differences between him and the rest of humanity became acute. So he travelled alone, surviving with anything less that his strengthened feet and convenient no necessity of food; of course, a condition that made him an easy prey to wild animals.

One night whilst he travelled he heard the intimidating roar of a lion close by. Not long he lasted unknown of his situation, for his new eyes allowed him to see better that he ever did before. That did not lessen his fear though. He watched with hopelessness as the hunter locked eyes with him, positioned to destroy what was in front of it if the crimson-eyed tried to move a finger. The man was aghast, and not long passed before he dared to run from the lioness that intended to turn him into her children's food (he was certainly not fitted to be a hunter), thus evoking the animal's ire. Of course she attacked, and as soon as she started to run after him he dared to turn his face, facing death one more time. He had no time to think, no time to reflect upon his inmediate destiny, and still...time was enough to surrender to his instincts. A rage of ire travelled through his body like a lightning, filling his emptiness for a second of the bright flames of strength. His eyes started to shine in the middle of the night, reflecting the deepest red that had ever been seen. His face turned from the expression of terror to a flagitious one, and his position mutated from that of a scared puppy to a courageous hunter, waiting for his pray to reach him. And she did, the lioness reached the man, ending the encounter with disastrous consequences...for her.

No traces of humanity were left in the demeanor of the man, for the violence that showed in him was no match of any wicked human. He destroyed his rival, violated its life with his own hands, leaving behind only her unrecognizable body surrounded by a pool of blood. Of course his savage behavior left his clothes and hands covered of the splatter of blood, and as soon as he focused his attention on his crimson tinctured hands, he found the source of the thirst that haunted him from the very first day.

Never blood dared to present itself in such an elegant appearance. The red fluid shined in a way diamonds would rotten in envy, and its gentle travelling in his hands was more seductive than any woman he ever encountered. Suddenly he felt the bloodlust, the undeniable need to drink every drop of that sacred liquid and leave no trace of it behind. And he did, he licked his hands with no remorse, enjoying every drop of red in his tongue. He then proceeded to lick the blood that had fallen to earth, and the one that was left on the lifeless lioness's body. The sensation of fulfillment was beyond description, a sensation he was willing to experiment once, twice, three times, four times, infinite times.

And so he did.

He dared not to touch human beings at first, not because he did not want to, but rather because the thought never crossed through his mind. He made all animals his prey, though. Small animals, big animals, rodents, mammals, everything was a delicious source of blood he could drink and fall in ecstasy with, discovering that his teeth had changed in ways that penetrating skin and sucking from it was considerably easier. He knew no boundaries to his bloodlust, torturing and drinking the livings beings with a perversion that could not be named. It was a will, a desire, an addiction, a undeniable necessity. But then the day came when he found an injured woman on his trips, covered in her own blood.

- Sir...please help this careless being. I should have...been a good girl and stayed close to my family and now...I am suffering for my foolishness. Please good sir...even though I did a wrongdoing...I do not wish to die...please save me...I do not wish to die - The girl pleaded, seeing her life sweep away by the claws of death, something very similar of what he experiencied that fatidical night. She had been attacked when she slipped away despite her tribe's protests, and now she was suffering for her lack of tact.

In ordinary conditions he would have helped the girl, he would have tried to save her even though her wounds were to severe to endure. He was not a merciless man, even though the crime he commited was one of the most deplorable, to the point he was chained to a new, depraved reality. But now he was a monster, a man devoid of humanity, and taking care of human beings had become everything but a priority. Instead...he could not help to focus on the delicious blood that radiated like a thousand suns from her belly and clothes, with the inmediate need to feed from it. He did not doubt to get close to her and violate her skin with his fangs, not regretting his acts despite the screams of horror of his victim. He sucked her blood with a will he did not show before, not even the very day he discovered the pleasure of it. He sinked his fangs with no remorse, reaching the depths of her body and taking every single trace of blood that flowed through it, and as soon as he was finished he felt reborn...a pleasure as intense that from that very moment all human lives became insignificant, and from that very moment...he proclaimed them as prey and nothing else.

Of course there were protests from the humans, for they tried to defend themselves when he dared to attack their communities. He was almost berserk, his body devoid of fear, with enough trust in his strength to believe he was able destroy any tribe on his path...and he was right. Pleased he was when he discovered that when human weapons harmed him he regenerated almost instantly, making all of them no treat to him. His regenerations seemed to know no boundaries, for even when he lost limbs he was able to recover them almost instantly, and fortunately for him...but not for his victims, his abilities did not stop there. Unless he destroyed the bodies of his prey completely, as soon as he feeded on them he sucked their souls along with their blood, leaving behind undead bodies with no sense of reason that blindly followed him and answered each one of his commands with no second thoughts. He was not very fond of them, disposing them as soon as he found it appropriate, but they nevertheless helped him achieving his goals. He found that young bodies such as children and young teenagers did not become those monsters though, instead, becoming weak versions of himself. A very whimsical of a man he became, and so he dared not to leave traces of the young ones he ate, for he was not willing to create beings that could do such as himself. And still, he could not control the birth of all of these similar creatures, slowly giving birth to a new race that in the future would be named as...

...vampires.

With time the original vampire became aware of another delightful advantage of his new identity, for years passed and he noticed he did not age at all. When after almost one hundred years he found his body as youthful as the night when he converted, he started to understand the meaning of the words of god. "Y_ou shall suffer for the rest of eternity the weight of your sins" _recalled, being aware of the fact that until a enormous strength came and tore his undead life...he would roam for the rest of eternity. He was not terrified of eternity, instead, he was pleased. On a night of fullmoon he fixed his sight to the blackened sky, smirking as soon as he felt the trace of eternity between his fingers. He was powerful, the most powerful being, and also he was eternal. Life seemed to be promising, a life prospecting of thousands of sins, thousands of bloody sins.

- Thank you god for the gift you have given me! Thank you for making me the strongest bloody creature of all the universe! Thank you for making me alien to humanity, for it only makes people weak. Thank you for making me able to see the moon for the rest of eternity, and thank you for filling this world with delightful human blood. I shall take advantage of this gift by becoming stronger with every bite, stronger with every death. That...until the day I become as strong as yourself, god himself! Remember me, your future usurper, Caín! - He pleaded, echoing his horrid voice in the once peaceful night.


	2. Darkness

_**Chapter 2: Darkness**_

_"How much time has passed since I left the world of humanity, and on my own conquered a whole new dimension of dread? When was the last time I found myself human? Long, too long, maybe even before god turned me into this, into this thing I don't know what truly is, or why it was meant to exist in the first place._

_Maybe on a sense, it was not that long ago. After all, aren't I independent of time since the very beginning of my vampiric life? it doesn't matter if my conversion took place one second ago, one minute ago, one hour ago, a day ago, a month ago, a year ago, a century a go, or even millennia ago...for me it doesn't even matter, for now time holds no meaning. It is different for the rest of the beings on this world, though. A constant struggle for life, terror of age, all humans live with the burden of time over their shoulders with no way to escape, or no way to delay their inevitable death, the death that if it never got to grasp a being through indistinct "accidents", one day or another is taken away by time. There is simply no way to escape from that. Yeah, time is such a bitch._

_I, on the other hand, have been the only truthful one who has exceeded the influence of time. I, I alone, as if I were chosen by the world to do something out of the ordinary. I live in such a dream, don't I? I am pretty much that lucky bastard in stories who exceeds because of nothing, because it was so, because it was meant that way. I never excelled as a virtuous man, I wasn't the best hunter, the best man, and probably my intelligence is not something that can never be recalled as my "strongest qualities". It was always that way, and in some ways I was accustomed to that. Just take the biggest example in my life, the example that lead me to my exile from humanity; the death of my brother. _

_I know very well that my story will transcend time, such as I will, I know my tale will be sang to the population and travel mouths through generations with some modifications that I will soon enough laugh off, some of the ones who hear it believing it completely, and some skeptical ones doubting it maybe because of reason, or maybe for the sake of insurgency. But in the end, my story is mine and mine alone.  
_

_In the beginning I was nothing more than a defenseless human. The son of the ones who conquered the paradise, and let it slip away. It was that way and always should be, because humanity cannot hold enough wisdom in their insignificant one hundred year span to be able to make a solid and endearing conquest. I was the firstborn, and since the root of my being I was taught the basis of agriculture, a science so simple and yet so revealing that time, the very first sign of progress, of evolution in humanity. I was proud of my doing, for I was one of the instruments that marked the beginning of a sedentary life, the prelude of the end of an era and a new one to come. It was that way until my little brother, Abel, proved me otherwise._

_Abel was kind of a obstinate being. He was very simple-minded, content with small things and the minimum required to survive. There was not a single tear of ambition in his pathetic soul, and yet, he was a nice guy. He dedicated his life to shepherding, another occupation that started as humanity decided to settle down. He was a hard-worker, and also his diligence was something with no match, even though he only worked for the sake of survival. He didn't love what he did, he was just very good at it, but because he was excellent in his profession, he was a constant target of congrats. And everybody wanted him to shepherd the animals, for the ones that had the fortune of being on his hands were always healthy, meat of unparalleled quality._

_I wasn't such a lucky being. I was a passionate man like no other, my ambition surpassed the will of humanity itself, and my intentions were far from being peccant. I was a good man! I intended to do my job properly despite my unfortunate paucity of talent in what I did. But I worked hard, I worked well, even though my crops were never the biggest or shiniest. I was passionate about my doing because I felt it as the root of civilization! I felt I was doing well, I felt as a virtuous man. _

_But he, the lord, god himself, thought otherwise._

_Tell me for a moment, how would you feel if one day the concrete meaning of wisdom, the real meaning of right, found the doings of your brother as memorable, and yours as miserable? As you probably guessed, it felt as if the burden of an accursed destiny had fallen upon me. God felt grateful and proud of Abel's doing, while my fine crops were left behind and forgotten. The work of a passionless but gifted man was preferred over the work of a hard-working passionate man. It was like that, as simple as that. But I was always a man full of ambition, when I think about it now, probably no other could have ever matched my will, for it transcended life and death. I simply was not willing to accept an accursed destiny, so what did I do? I destroyed the treat! I killed Abel, his sheep, his cows and his non-existent dreams, because nobody shall ever dare to corrupt my ambition, nobody, not even my brother._

_That, of course, awakened the ire of god, and since then, I lost the realm of humanity, having it slipped away from my hands. I endured suffering without equal, for in a long night god focused in taking the life of a man inch by inch, sucking dream by dream, but even though that suffering is something that haunts me even now, I never regretted absolutely anything, and I felt how I died a thousand times, and yet my esteem was always held high. And yet, somehow, god decided that that night wasn't meant for me to die. Why? I don't fucking know._

_Living a life as a vampire is not something anybody would regret. Who wouldn't want an opportunity to live by the rest of eternity as a being of unparalleled strength? Nobody. That's why it was easy to sell humans the idea of a promised immortality if they followed my ambition. That wasn't hard to expect wasn't it? Of course I wouldn't misspend my superior life in a rampage, I would take advantage of my condition to conquer humans, to domesticate them, make them mine and mine alone. Force them to worship me, to treat me as their undeniable master. And so, the first civilizations came to fruition, civilizations of fear and stupid hopes of something I would never give them. And so I marked the beginning of society. Indirectly, the "curse" of god made me uncover the secrets of evolution, and helped me achieve my ambition. He is such a graceful being, isn't he?"_

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This chapter might be a bit tedious for some, but it was rather necessary. Just a chapter of thoughts, just before the insane wrap of time. Yup, next chapter will take place in the present, where the Hellsing organization and particularly Integra, Alucard and Seras live ;) what could be expected when the two vampires clash? we shall see.

Thank you very much for your reading.


	3. Laid To Rest

**_Beware! long chapter incoming(?)!_**

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**_Chapter 3: Laid To Rest_**

— Sir Integra, did you call me? — The forever young Seras Victoria claimed, holding the door of her master's master's office, unsure of the matter that the female human had to share with her. She held tightly the corners of the door, anxiously, as if expecting a wake up call or dreadful news. Taking account the constant, chaotic attacks the land of England had endured recently, the paranoia of the still newborn vampire could be justified.

30 years have passed since the fall of millennium. 30 years where the world started to be characterized with fragile "peace", at least concerning any organized attacks from unnatural beings. It seemed as if the tacticians had ceased to be, since for this considerable period of time vampires stopped being considered serious threats to become merely screaming creatures claiming attention. Hellsing activity became just a series of cases that were easily taken care of.

And yet, with the recent return of Alucard, the situation started to turn gruesome.

— Don't just stay there. Please, come inside — So the leader of hellsing claimed, with a voice so demanding and serious that almost sounded like a formal order, maybe even if she didn't consciously intended it to be that way. In a way her words were calm, yet they held a perceptible roughness that the vampire was able to feel, a roughness that described bother, worry and exhaustion. Seras followed her claim, adventuring herself to face the older woman and her almost certain bad news

— I see the look in your eyes, I see the worry in them. Unfortunately, I am obliged to reassure your fears — Seras's face has never been successful in concealing her true feelings or intentions. Even though she was professional enough not to let herself be driven by emotions in most situations, her innocent face never dared to hide the truth. It was not hard for Integra to decipher her anxiety

— Recent innocent deaths have been located in the area of Cambridge. Young men and women around their twenties seem to be the central choice of victims — She then proceeded to reach the top of her desk, signaling Seras to get closer and take a look at the map that was placed there beforehand

— No preference for sex, background or occupation. Yet, the age group is undeniably narrowed. At first a few people with no visible connection between were reported missing, but close subsequent weeks started to worry the authorities, since the cases of missing people only started to increase in frequency. Of course action has been taken, and for now the results of the investigation have given us a slight overview of what's going on — She then lowered her head and started to tap indistinct locations in the map with her gloved finger

— So first, even though the locations where the allegedly kidnapped people are reported to be last been seen are kind of randomly located in all the perimeter of the city, it is not hard to see that all of them are either pubs, cafeterias, centers of recreation or in other words places where the young people tend to frequent. The fact that Cambridge of all places has been the field of this atrocities further convinces us there's no denial that the only solid pattern of this case is the age group. Now, when I was confronted by the authorities I told them these kind of cases, even though gruesome, do not involve Hellsing unless there is solid proof of the involvement of vampires or other kinds of freaks, but...as you might guess, that wasn't the end of the story —

Seras as always was willing to listen quietly every word her master's master had to say about anything, in particular new cases. And every time she had the opportunity to hear her was a opportunity to further prove her worth. There was something fascinating of Integra, and that is her natural ability to command. Her words have always been calm and thoughtful, no matter how terrifying the situation might be. She speaks of death naturally, and sometimes she spoke cynically in a way that convinced everyone that she was right. It was just a natural gift to lead, an aura of leadership that everyone comprehended, particularly the female vampire. And even now that the human had started to show signs of aging, her eyes still held a characteristic aggression in them. In secret Seras wished she could be just like Integra, but her sensible nature did not let her be as cold, or as stoic.

— Not too long ago the corpses of some of the victims started to be found. None of them is complete, nor any is even recognizable, which has delayed the investigation — Integra then let out a deep sigh, lowering her head and closing her eyes

— That is...not the work of a sane person. When I say that no body is complete and none of them is recognizable is because...they have been found chopped into small pieces and tossed in the streets, appearing simply as pieces of rotten flesh — Seras could not hide her surprise at the news, yet stayed silent for the time being

— And the state they were in...that is probably the strongest hint of the involvement of a vampire. The pieces of flesh were not in a state resembling their state of decay. Actually, they appeared at first like pieces of leather that were hardly linked to humans, but recent analysis not only has been able to link them to the disappearances, but also has shown that the particular state shows that all the blood of the bodies had been sucked previously. The skin was completely dry, with no traces of blood behind, not even a single drop. Taking into account that for now there are no reliable witnesses we cannot be sure whether there is real involvement of a vampire, but we cannot simply ignore it either. I have decided to send a small group to the city to investigate, in which you are involved. Is that clear? — Seras clinched her fists upon the news, with her answer as clear as ever. Take innocent human beings and give them a fate like that? What kind of monster could do so?

— Yes Sir! — She merely pleaded, her heart decided and her eyebrows frown

— Then so be it — Concluded the head of hellsing.

Her objective clear, Seras dared to turn her back at her superior. Yet for one second she stopped, when a train of thoughts crossed her mind — Sir Integra, what about my master? — True, even though he had returned, the distance that in the beginning took place as "professional" due to their master-servant bond had only broadened for reasons that she could not perceive. Seras has become alien to Alucard, and lately has felt how it seems like their bond fades away or, at least, he prefers to just stay in a disquieting silence

— I have already sent him to a city close-by. Unfortunately the cases, although different, are affecting places other than Cambridge —

— I see — Finished the young draculina, a hint of worry drawn in her face, before heading away to her objective.

* * *

'Hey mother, what are you doing up there? it is almost painful to see you so beautifully dressed when I am taking the lives of men. Almost makes me feel like a bad guy!'

'Come here Taq, you're wasting time'

'Ah c'mon, why are you always so tense doing this? if this is the only thing that makes us worthy, then we might as well enjoy it'

'...is it?'

'Huh?'

'The only thing that makes us worthy? is it?'

— A sigh echoes in the night — 'Who cares? Are we the ones who decide? it is not in our nature to make decisions. What is right or wrong will never apply to us...don't think about it Li, we might as well enjoy the sighting before we are caught and probably killed'

'...A star'

'Eh? Speak clearly'

'I just saw a shooting star, right there'

'Ah...um, sorry I missed it'

* * *

Seras now understood the trace of worry she perceived in her master's master's usually stoic face, since the way the situation truly was made her explanation transgress as unreal.

First they were only disappearances, one, then two, then three disappearances. As weeks progressed the situation started to worry the authorities, so intensive action started to take place. Then, as if trying to imply a fearless disposition from the author, limbs started to appear in random places on the street, completely dried from blood or any fluid whatsoever. Then, pieces of flesh that at first weren't even considered parts of human beings.

Evidence, witnesses, they all were deficient, and what truly is the center of concern is the fact that every night is a potential kidnapping. The source needed to be found as early as possible, and such task corresponded to Hellsing for the time being.

Seras Victoria is a fiery vampiress, her endeavor has no rival, and through her veins runs the powerful blood of the undead king. Little there exists that can prove a threat for her, since even though her undeniable strength can someday find a worthy opponent, in her shadow lingers the essence of Alucard for maybe the rest of eternity, and thus even though she might be beaten, somewhere very close he will always be. But even though she might prove to be a very serious threat to the enemies of the protestant church, on the surface she appears as nothing more than a young, harmless and beautiful woman whose blue shade symbolize purity, and her blonde strands of hair jump in her back comfortably following the rhythm of wind while appearing as graceful, narcissistic strands of gold. A very beautiful view that helplessly turns the look of alien eyes towards her.

And so, she is willing to take advantage of her appearance and condition to, with fortune, catch the sights she wants to.

This is is one of those nights were Seras is reminded of the life she once had, but will never be hers again. The human life, the life of those ignorant to the threats that lurk in the night, living only with and for their own simple troubles, mindlessly following their sometimes utopic dreams and pretty much not caring about what secrets might be hidden in their noses. Humans living completely alien to evil ones, just letting their bodies move following the musical patterns, letting the world itself do as it must. The vampiress sits quietly on the counter of the bar, hearing the deafening voice of music that echoes in the discotheque while occasionally stirring the cocktail that she ordered as it is custom, but seeing it with disgust this time around. The fact that what used to be delicious for her taste buds now only provokes a sensation of aversion, weighted as well with her current solitude and reminding of past times, fills Seras with a sensation of inadequacy that soon enough shines in her face.

— Why those beautiful eyes are endowed of such sadness? — The way her thoughts were weighing in her mind made her lose focus on her surroundings, not even realizing the presence of a man interested in her until he was close enough to strike with a personal conversation. This fact startled her briefly, but then she dared to follow the source of those kind, curious words held within a deep, masculine voice, discovering soon enough that her companion was a man that of course she had never seen before, with kind of long, wavy jet black hair, a skin pale enough to almost shine in the night and a friendly smile; yet, what principally focused her attention were his eyes, not only because of the hint of narcissism that they evoked, but also their undeniable crimson color, a shade way darker and concentrated that even that of her master. The surprise showed in her face, wondering if those were impressive contact lenses and make up, or why would he make his nature that obvious for her to guess. In the end, if he truly was a vampire it is almost certain he would identify the essence of dead emanating from her as well. Unless he was aware of that fact and didn't care? it was almost as if he were intentionally biting the hook.

— Is there something wrong? — He claimed between her silence and surprise, his kind smile still immovable

— You...what are you doing? — Was the first question that popped out of her head, confused about what to think of the man in front of her

— Ah...I just saw a beautiful woman sitting alone in the counter, her beautiful eyes drowned in a strange look of sadness. I felt terrible, and curious as well I have to admit, so I had to simply come and ask, why are you sad? — The tone of his voice was a little strange, filled with an accent she could not identify. His words were also a little fancy in sound, and so she could not help but smile in return

— It is nothing, really. Just thinking — Then she changed her expression to seem more open to her companion. He seemed friendly enough, but of course to be able to commit such crimes without reports of distress that was at least noticed by some people it is necessary to be able to gain the trust of the victims, so she cannot help but be a little anxious and attentive, though trying her best not to show her emotions to him

— ¿Thinking? We're in a discoteque my dear, might as well just ignore every trace of worry from your mind, at least for this night. May I sit beside you? — He suggested by landing his hand on the chair besides Seras

— Well...ye-yeah — The spontaneous act of the man left her helplessly dazed, yet he seemed either to ignore the fact or not perceive it at all, though that did not seem verisimilar. According to his voice he found a seat, not losing time in continuing his speech

— Would you care for a drink? — Now...that question left her out of place. If it he was making such a proposal...does that mean he isn't what he seems to be? Besides the unknown nature of the conversation, Seras was not willing to let herself drown in discomfort. If he being whatever he was had the possibility of being or at least have a connection with the culprit was uncertain, but because of that she could not simply cut of his bad-placed attempt at flirting. So she took a small breath, and started giving her best disposition to unveil the true intentions of the man, being they licit or not

— No, thank you. I have been drinking a lot and for now I'd just prefer to enjoy the music and the night — Of course, even though he could or not realize her nature, she would not be that careless to make her nature evident

— Music and night...well...shall we dance? — He then offered his hand — This piece is delightful enough to dance, don't you think? relax, go with the flow. Come with me for a bit, I will make sure you will not repent to it — For a moment she just stared at his willing hand in front of her. Their conditions were completely different, their mood, their level of nervousness (at least concerning the external aspect of it) and probably even the background of their encounter. The fact that they were completely oblivious to one another was obvious and kind of ironic, but probably was the reason that in some ways lead to the man whose name was still unknown to actually approach the young vampiress. He did not know about her sadness, about her feeling of inadequacy or the distance with Alucard, and even though he was probably informed of at least the most important matters revolving the assassinations, he certainly didn't feel the responsibility nor the dread of cleaning the traces of dead behind the assassin. He did not understand anything about her condition or her life, and thus he did not have the worry of taking care of not "hurting her feelings" or anything of that sort; he just cared about he was seeing, about what was happening at that very second. She just seemed sad and he wanted to help her soothe a bit her bitterness, as simple as that. "Going with the flow", as he mentioned.

— Sure — She merely concluded before taking his hand and then being lead to the dance floor. His hand was gloved and held hers with kindness, yet it could not be denied that his touch and aura were almost a reminder of a strong, deadly and incredibly cold blizzard; a blizzard that in the core of its power held a strange sense of safety she could taste with her fingers now laying in his.

Everything about them was unknown to both. They were just newly met faces with no soul beneath. Two bodies now entwined by their hands, willing to be lead by the sound of music. She could still not guess whether or not the man with her was a treat, but for then she was willing not to care. She was tense and he was kind, was there anything to fear? probably, but the worry could wait. For the time being she would just...go with the flow.

* * *

— You son of a- just kill me already! — It is not in Alucard's nature to torture his victims. His kills are sometimes "playful", where he lasts a little longer than expected delivering the final blow...letting his opponents rejoice in a victory they simply never actually get to taste; but, torturing per se is not something he usually does nor enjoys, and it is evidenced in his expression.

The perimeter of the city of Cambridge is infested by creatures of the night. They are too many, but their almost tactical sparse population keeps the human eyes relatively unaware of their presence. Usually on a considerable range there are no more than one or two vampires, principally for reasons relating to their personal species's laws about property and prestige. The vampiric society revolves around three basic laws that even though they are not inherent to every newborn, their usual align to their creator makes them aware of them sooner than later. They are basically the law of acknowledgement, the law of respect and the law of silence.

The law of acknowledgement recognizes vampires as species superior to humans in every way, superior in strength, endurance and wisdom, as well as the norm where a vampire may feed and turn humans into ghouls at will as long as they do it following the law of silence.

The law of respect lies in concordance to the law of acknowledgement, and its existence has the objective of recognizing the distinct and not always visible hierarchy of vampires. Longevity is probably the most important factor that is considered regarding hierarchy, since this attribute is strictly tied to more power and almost always a vast knowledge of their surroundings and prey, including their source and population. Taking this into account it is usual for the strong vampire (or at least the accustomed vampire, who is very familiar with his or her surroundings) to have a broad "personal space", and thus expect it not to be violated by any other being. Vampires know about this and should be expected to respect, so it is not uncommon for vampires to know themselves very well and cover many agreements about their territory.

The last one, the law of silence, explains about the necessity to hide their nature to humans. Even though humans are lesser beings to vampires, the fact that they currently overpower the world in terms of population is undeniable. Their resources and possibilities are endless, and thus if they dared to move massively against the race they would certainly bring them to extinction, and that is something everybody wants to avoid, at least until their numbers grow.

The laws are pretty simple and become the most basic knowledge of every vampire,and they are precisely the reason Alucard is a little...unsettled.

There are just too many vampires in a close range, almost uncountable, which is very strange considering how mistrustful vampires tend to be. Usually more than three vampires is a call for conflict, and the possibility rises accordingly to their numbers. It is simply too strange that they seemingly coexist well in such an environment. Also, the way they are located in the perimeter is too organized for them not to be related in any way. Close enough to make their presence known to each other, yet far enough to move without causing a ruckus, everything leads to the thought that these vampires are related somehow, maybe by blood, maybe by a single master lurking somewhere.

Alucard has been killing every ghoul and vampire he has encountered, knowing that very close lay too many others. He does not mind the situation itself, since none of them prove to be a treat, but sets and sets of toys to play the game of dismemberment on. He does not care if they are few or many, since he pleasingly would get rid of all of them. What unsettles him is the thought of probably being around a powerful entity, being it another obscure organization or a powerful vampire, not because of fear or anything of that sort, but the undeniable rising sensation of excitement over a worthy opponent. The case itself still lacked many decisive clues, and if he dared to continue killing without trying to connect the little strings that make the case real, both Hellsing and the authorities would take a lot of time getting to the culprit, and Alucard was not willing to wait that long.

I have my reasons for not letting you die yet. And if you're sharp enough you might just realize the words I want to hear before putting you out of your misery - The no life king claimed between his characteristic smirk, letting his face close to the vampire that is probably expecting his own death. He was a very courageous fellow who was willing to face his pain behind a mask of anger, though his trembling body and the fever in his eyes showed that there was little more pain he could handle before his mind broke into pieces

— You...I do not know...anything, you're wasting your tim-ah! Don't, don't, stop! — he screamed with a voice drowned in tears, while a vivid flame was placed in his wounds. His body twisted in pain, yet he could not move because of the restrains in his arms and legs. Not too long ago Alucard tied the unfortunate vampire in a way he was completely immobilized, particularly his strongly tied hands, placed in front of him and in easy reach of the Nosferatu, placed one in top of the other with restrains so tight they had turned a purplish color. Some fingers were missing already, not because of the fight but the torture, when every time he refused to talk, Alucard would cut one of his fingers and burn the wound with a lighter that pretty much reminded him of Integra.

Not being able to endure the pain anymore, the younger vampire's voice and attitude started to break — The ones who are behind the kidnappings in Cambridge, I-I know who they are. Please let me be and I tell you, please, please, please! — he claimed, despair written all over his mind. The look of his eyes was exhausted and full of tears, while his head was facing the floor, letting one or two tears fall down occasionally

— Spit all your misery now that you're broken, and maybe I will kill you soon — Alucard's voice was overwhelming, serious, devoid of mercy. And even though the other man could hear him, the pain was enough to numb most of his senses, including his hearing

— I-I am a newly made vampire, I don't know much about the one who made us or our real purpose but... — he took a deep breath and closed his eyes, maybe as an attempt to concentrate on the topic in hand and with enough fortune ease his body from pain — I know that even though not all us come from the same person, we are all made by either him or his subordinates, maybe like-like a chain reaction. So yeah, we all follow the same head —

— Is he the author of the kidnappings? —

— N-no, I don't know who they are, I just... —

— "are"? —

— Y-yeah, the two of them, brothers maybe, they go and appear normal, and bring victims to the head. Don't know their names or the heck they are, hell, I haven't even seen them! I just know they are that of gold...and silver color —

— What? —

— I-I mean their eyes...and skin. One of them is gold, and the other one is silver. That's all! Please let me be! — Alucard watched for a moment the mournful vampire, claiming with every scream for the moment of his death. His mind and attitude were broken, so it was unlikely that he attempted to hide something. It seemed as if that was truly everything he knew. He then stood up, making his victim show signs of surprise

— Y-you won't leave me here will you? Don't, please don't! Just kill me now! — he screamed, truly tantalized by the situation

— Good-bye, ignorant insect — He concluded before tossing the lit lighter over the body of his victim, watching as it slowly consumed the remains of his body between heartrending screams of pain. The Nosferatu simply turned and felt the heat of the little inferno caressing his back, his smirk as vivid as ever — Killing for the sake of nothing, not even knowing or caring about why you're here or why you do what you do. You do not even deserve to be eaten, you only deserve to burn in hell — He whispered while the other burned, stepping away from the scene while doing so.

While he was enough away from the scene, he dared to turn his gaze to the red moon over his head. His characteristic smile now gone, he started to worry not because of the situation itself which now is a little clearer than before, but because now that he was surrounded by the silence of the night, he realized he could not hear or even feel the essence of his draculina. He knew Seras was somewhere, he could still grasp her soul between his, but it seemed as their connection had been silenced in purpose. It couldn't have been her, she is not strong enough to block him in such way, though it also did not make sense that another creature was doing so. It only could be made by a very strong force.

— A very strong force — He said dedicating his smirk to the moon.

* * *

As time passed Seras could feel how her body started to stop responding to her will, and not only her body, but her mind as well. It was a strong sensation of detachment, as if she had been experiencing a transformation to become a doll. She felt how the numbness started to overcome her body, and how the loud music started to fade away. She felt unconscious, though the world surrounding her still felt real, just slowly...slowly fading away.

Unconsciously she knew there was something very wrong with the situation, though her conscious mind was not willing to respond. She experienced peace, and it was all that mattered. She could feel the stress fading away, the complains fading away, and the responsibilities fading away. Her mind was silent, clear, even Alucard's connection had been silenced, and for that moment she felt she could grasp the meaning of peace.

Soon enough there was a beautiful, gentle, small smile drawn in her face, while she rejoiced that majestic sensation with the little sensibility she had left. Now the air could not be felt, and even though she was aware she was dancing still, she didn't feel the floor. There was only one thing that was there in her foggy world, and that was the embrace of the man that was dancing with her.

She could feel the way they were holding each other was very intimate, and probably startled gazes dared to focus their attention on them every now and then, but she didn't care at all. Her head was gently placed in his warm chest, while she tightly wrapped her arms in his back. His arms were tightly embracing her as well, leaving no space between their bodies, and located in such a way Seras felt as if he were trying very hard to protect her from anything. Finally, his face seemed to be buried within her shoulder, his black hair falling with grace through her back, sometimes daring to caress her neck. They were close, too close, and she enjoyed every second of it.

Seras could not remember when did the situation start to turn that way. She could not grasp when his embrace became warm, or when their bodies fit each other in a tight embrace. She only remembered his words, how he asked her to dance, his pale skin and crimson eyes, but nothing else. It was strange, but she only wanted to embrace that unknown man for the rest of eternity, not ever wanting to let go, and she had no idea how the situation turned that way.

— Victoria — she felt the reverberation of his voice in her skin, feeling slightly surprised at the sudden call. Had she shared her name with him? No...or had she? How did he know it then?

— Y-Yes? — She only responded with a weak voice, feeling how his face turned to her, not leaving his place in her shoulder. She could see him while turning her own head, though it was difficult to do so in their position

— Are you tired my dear? — His voice was clear and endearing, though she knew it was completely devoid of feelings

— Tired? Ah... — She took a second to answer. Was she tired? She felt kind of foggy, but she could probably continue dancing for a long time — No, I'm...okay — He then let out a small laugh before continuing

— Do not worry for anything my dear, whether you feel energetic or tired, comfortable or uncomfortable, you might just tell me. Though...I'll make sure you feel warm and comfortable...always — For a moment he freed her back from his left hand, only to place it gently on her cheek, softly caressing the strands of hair that were on his reach. He then started to close the space between his face and her neck, leaving with his movement behind a pleasing sensation that flustered the vampiress. _"is he...going to bite me?" _she thought, feeling a bit anxious at it. For a moment she closed her eyes, waiting to feel the sharp pain from fangs piercing her soft skin.

It never occurred.

She opened her eyes startled, when everything she felt was a soft, warm, sensual kiss in her neck. The sensation felt like electricity traveling all over her body, beginning on the spot where his lips touched her skin. It was then that she felt her sight fading away, and her world turning surreal. She stopped dancing, she knew it well, and everything that was clear at that point were his deep crimson colored eyes piercing onto her eyes, onto her mind, onto her soul.

— Who...who are you? — she got to whisper in a almost inaudible voice. She felt herself fainting, not falling to the floor because his arm still held her tightly, as if he did not want to let go. And down of his eyes she could see his pale lips with a small smile drawn in them, a small...gentle...frosty smile.

— My dear, I see you are tired, and do not worry, I will not let you fall. Just let your body rest, you need it. Rest, let your body rest, let your mind rest, let your soul rest — He then locked his lips on the top of her head. And as soon as she started to close her eyes and his voice started to sound distant, he concluded — From now on you shall refer to me as...Cain —

— Ca-Cain... —

* * *

*sees all the text before* and this is what happens when a publication is delayed and written in many pieces D:

I have been a little busy lately, that, and the fact that I have lacked inspiration. This chapter was very hard to write because of that, though that probably is not believable just gazing at its length xD. Truth is I am very sorry for not updating quickly, and I am not willing to promise prompt updates from now on, principally because when I do so I have the tendency to take even longer xD so no, I will not promise anything, nuff said.

I hope you all like it despite its length. I promise not to write such long chapters from now on, because I know that much text becomes tiresome after a while.

Now, concerning the reviews!

_** PinkTypewritter** _Muchas gracias por tus reseñas (me tomo el atrevimiento de responder en español, puesto que me has dicho que es también tu lengua natal xD), es bastante satisfactorio para mí saber que por lo menos existe una o dos personas que de hecho disfrutan con mis historias. Debo admitir que este es un experimento ante el cual guardo grandes expectativas, principalmente debido a las barreras del lenguaje. Es posible que luego me aventure a publicarla en español, sin embargo solo lo haré cuando ya la haya terminado en inglés ;)

Con respecto al libro, no, debo admitir que no lo he leído. No lo conocía y debo admitir que has despertado mi curiosidad con tu comentario, por lo que es muy probable que me atreva a ojearlo :)

_** muse42** _Thank you! I do not dare to promise I will update quickly xD but I do promise I will not leave this story unfinished. Mark my words.

_** Francisco Devilman Warrior** _hmm, better let Cain answer himself, shouldn't we?

_"Hmm, I believe you do not understand completely the heights of my will, do you? do not compare myself to mythological creatures, that not you or anyone can truly prove their existence. Me, on the other hand, have left my mark on the world countless of times, proving once, twice, as many times as you wish how the human mind tends to be so weak, subject to the manipulation of the stronger ones. _

_God probably knows this as well. I haven't heard about him in a long time, you know? he probably died while giving me this gift or...maybe now I am god himself, don't you think? and even though I cannot create the world at my will, I can, and will, destroy it when I wish, and nobody will be able to stop me. I will prove god himself that I can fulfill my ambition, and emerge victorious over his own creation. And concerning regretting the gift that I was given, that only proves further how weak the human mind is, so weak that regrets after achieving what it wished on the first place. News, there are no traces of humanity within my soul. My mind is dark, strong, and it will never succumb to the hopelessness or wishes of the mortal ones. You are doing nothing else but underestimate me._

_Long time has passed since my transformation, more time that what you can imagine. A long time where I have rejoiced manipulating the minds of the weak. If god cared a bit about you humans, don't you think he would have stopped me now? I have caused pain everywhere, blood has been spitted, tears have fallen, and he hasn't even moved a finger. If you think he cares about the likes of you, think again."_

Thank you very much for reading, it is nice to see Cain being insulted(?) because it means the character has made sort of an impact. I attempt to create deeper characters as time passes, and hopefully I will achieve it :) thank you very much, I hope this story will continue catching your attention.

Concerning Cain's destiny...ermmm...I'm still not sure about the ending to be honest xD I will just say something, god never leaves a promise unfulfilled.

I am in time! I published this in time to say this: **Happy New Year!**


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